Youssef Abdelke, Syrian artist and anti-regime activist Damascus – Arab Today Syrian artist Youssef Abdelke has been released after being held for five weeks by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Abdelke’s wife Hala Alabdalla, a prominent Syrian film-maker, announced the release of her husband on her Facebook page on Thursday, thanking everyone who supported the artist during his imprisonment. Alabdalla, who is in France, told the Lebanese newspaper The Daily Star that she had spoken briefly to her husband, who told her he had been freed. “Yes, it is true,” she said. “He said it has been very hard, but that he’s OK,” she added. “We don’t have many details, but we’re very happy.Until now we have had no real news, just rumours.” The director said she hoped her husband’s release would raise awareness about other political detainees. “We hope all the political prisoners will be free, because nobody should be in prison for asking for liberty,” she said. Abdelke, whose work is displayed in museums around the world, was arrested at a security checkpoint in the western port city of Tartus, along with two fellow members of the Communist Labour Party. The 62-year-old artist is an outspoken critic of the Syrian regime and a member of the internal opposition National Coordination Body for Democratic Change (NCB). He has been jailed in the past by the Syrian authorities. Abdelke's friends and family rallied around his wife Hala and launched a Facebook campaign calling for his release from jail. "His detention may be a small thing when compared to the bloody violence and destruction [in Syria] but it's still unacceptable," Alabdalla told news agencies after his arrest.
GMT 22:48 2018 Thursday ,13 December
French archaeological mission discovers artefacts in Umm Al QaiwainGMT 13:31 2018 Monday ,10 December
Nobel laureates in peace, science and economics to receive awardsGMT 15:44 2018 Monday ,03 December
Israel uncovers gold coins, believed to be hidden from CrusadersGMT 09:47 2018 Sunday ,25 November
50 publishing houses take part in Doha International Book FairGMT 16:13 2018 Wednesday ,21 November
Moscow Region’s mammoth discovery: Archaeologists dig up fossils with buried ‘treasure’GMT 10:56 2018 Thursday ,15 November
Announcing Winners of Sultan Qaboos Award for Culture, Arts and LiteratureGMT 15:25 2018 Monday ,12 November
“Syria, Pearl of East” exhibition opened in HungaryGMT 12:38 2018 Wednesday ,07 November
Topping-out of Berlin's Pergamon Museum restoration in spring 2019Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©
Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©
Send your comments
Your comment as a visitor